Rosemary
Rosemary is an Archangel that arrives to help fight the Demons in New York. Unlike Michael and the other original Archangels created by God, she is born through a fusion of multiple Angel spirits. In the three years after her birth, she was Baltoh's student in Hell. After coming to New York, she becomes his subordinate, acting as a spy and double agent to leak him vital information from Heaven. When she follows Baltoh back to Hell, he turns her into one of his Valkyries. Appearance Rosemary is a caucasian woman in her early twenties with long scarlet hair. Coincidently, her youthful appearance is due not to her age, but to the average ages and appearances of the Angel souls that made her. Even when she was "born", she was already fully grown and fully developed and will retain her youth for the rest of her life. Like all Archangels, she wears a white uniform of boots, baggy pants, and a sweatshirt and vest, though unlike Baltoh, she doesn't have a hood. She also wears Rosary chains on both her wrists, has a halo above her head, and two feathered wings growing out of her back. When she becomes a Valkyrie, she wears armor identical to Selene and Molly's. Personality and History Rosemary is a kind and courageous woman, who fights to protect the living against the Demons of Hell. Immediately after her "birth", she went to Hell to try and carve down the Gargoyle population, but was immediately overpowered by the legions of Demons. Baltoh saved her before the Demons can have their way with her, and after seeing his strength, she asked him to train her. Using the time ratio of Hell to Cinereo and Heaven, she served as his student for three years without any of her compatriots finding out. During those three years, Baltoh put her through brutal training, such as fighting Demons and Goliaths with weights on her limbs or binding her with spells and leaving her to escape while left in Titan territory. It was during these three years that her admiration for Baltoh's strength turned into feelings of love. Her devotion was strong enough that she would have continued to stay in Hell and fight alongside Baltoh forever, but he convinced her to leave. He had learned what it meant to care for someone and decided he didn't want her staying in Hell after seeing the effect it was having on her. She returned to Heaven, having become the strongest Archangel in existence, though everybody thought she was simply a prodigy, never considering she had been trained by Baltoh. Twenty years of Cinereous time passed by before she and Baltoh met in New York. Regardless of her love for Baltoh and her time spent in Hell, she still retained loyalty to God, though found herself disappointed in the inactivity and arrogance of the Original Seven Archangels. When she comes to New York, she initially keeps her distance from Baltoh, due to both the fact that her apprenticeship is forbidden and that she hasn't seen him in twenty years. Baltoh meets her, seeking her advice for his relationship with Selene, as she is the only person he trusts enough to speak with about the matter, and he's certain that she knows him better than anyone. Despite Rosemary's feelings for Baltoh, she advises him to trust Selene and himself, and not fight his instincts. In exchange, she asks him for a kiss, but he can't fulfill her desire. After Selene is kidnapped, Baltoh is forced to fight Rosemary and the other Archangels. While Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael accuse him of being on the Demon's side, Rosemary acknowledges the strain that he is under and the situation she is in. She's comforted by how much he has changed and is glad he has found someone who would have such an impact on his life, though is disheartened that she couldn't have been that someone. She declares that both sides shall fight without condemnation, that she will not judge him for what he must do to save Selene. When Selene is killed, Rosemary is able to sense Baltoh's pain and cries for his loss, as even though she resented and envied Selene, she can't bear to see his anguish. However, having witnessed Baltoh's Ragnarök technique while in Hell, Rosemary is openly terrified when she realizes how Baltoh will retaliate. While powerful, she suffers from a temperamental personality, often going through mood swings, especially when Baltoh is involved. In the aftermath of the first battle of the war, she finds him comforting Molly and helping her regain her spirit. Initially, it warms her heart to see how kind he can be and how much he had changed since meeting Selene, but then becomes angry with him that she didn't have that effect on him and that he fell in love with a human so quickly even though Rosemary spent three years with him in Hell. In the meeting right after, she comes to his defense when he brings up the Throne of Cinereo. In the second battle, she sees Selene and Molly in the grip of a bleak. Envious of Selene for having Baltoh's heart, Rosemary momentarily considers letting them die so that she will have Baltoh all to herself. She then remembers the pain he went through when Selene first died and resolves to protect her, that even though she resents Selene, she never wants Baltoh to experience that pain again. Later in the battle, she encounters Baltoh, partially transformed and slaughtering an army of Demons. He leaves her paralyzed with fear, but comes to his senses. In the third battle, she comes to the aid of Selene, Molly, and Rosemary fighting a super-charged Ghoul. Regardless of her strength, the Ghoul manages to defeat the four of them. Baltoh kills the beast and begins healing Selene, during which they share a kiss. Seeing them together enrages Rosemary and she leaves without saying anything to him. He finds her in a church and tries to convince her to act as his spy in Heaven, but she refuses. She confronts him, unable to withstand their undefined relationship. He confesses his feelings, telling her that while he was not in love with her, he had always loved her like she was family. Rosemary remembers the years she had spent with him in Hell, how even during the worst times, he had a smile (albeit small and hidden) whenever he was with her. She realizes that he really does care for her and swears her loyalty to him, under the condition that she can continue to be his family. After they establish the dynamics of their relationship, Rosemary begins searching for forbidden information in Heaven to give to Baltoh. One secret she finds is a spell called the Cleansing Repentance, one that lets an Angelic being cleanse a human of their sins, thus sparing them from Hell. When Baltoh begins performing the spell on people, she, Selene, and Molly use their powers to heal the recipients of any lasting damage. When Michael finds himself unable to understand the people's loyalty to Baltoh, she answers him by saying that Baltoh is nobler than any of Archangels, as he fights for the human race rather than God. She is still putting up the front that she is only a stranger to Baltoh but wants to reveal to everything where her true allegiance lies. In the battle against the Master of Torture and Titan, Rosemary insists on getting Baltoh's help to kill the Titan, though Michael loathes the idea. He eventually gives in and she goes to Baltoh, managing to seal Amon with multiple spells. She works together with Selene and Molly to heal Baltoh and restore his stamina, during which she and Selene are formally introduced. From then on, she helps Baltoh search for the Throne of Cinereo, even following him to Jehovah's home world. She also spends time with Selene and Molly, joining in on their tag-team fighting. Over time, her patience for the other Archangels begins to thin. When Michael confronts her on her suspicious cohesion with Baltoh, she declares that she'll no longer follow Michael's orders, or likewise obey anyone who claims to speak on behalf of God. When the Demon messenger reveals that Baltoh has the Sacred Relics, she does not turn on him like the other Archangels but is visibly upset. However, when he tells the story of Christ's true mission and she realize's God's true nature, she decides to reveal her loyalty to Baltoh. In front of everyone, she discards her crucifix and severs all ties with God and admits that she is Baltoh's student and subordinate. In the following battle against Legion, Baltoh trusts her with the shield and she fights alongside the other Archangels. In the Circle of Sloth, Prince Belphagor's power begins to affect her mind, stirring up residual feelings of frustration that Baltoh won't give her the romantic or even sexual relationship that she wants. Her view of herself drops, convinced that she is nothing more than a pet or slave to Baltoh, though sensing her inner turmoil, he breaks Belphagor's control and confirms his love for her. After getting separated in the desert, she ends up paired with Raphael in the Circle of Lust. She admits to him her frustration since she returned to Heaven, seeing how inept and passive the other Archangels were, how little they did to help the people of Earth, even if it was under God's orders. Despite her Archangel pride, Rosemary shows some slight masochistic traits. Beyond her feelings for Baltoh, Rosemary shows an instinctive sense of servitude towards him. Even after finishing her apprenticeship and leaving Hell, she only addresses Baltoh by name when other Angels and Archangels are nearby. Every other time she speaks with him, she calls him "Master". When she faces him in his semi-transformed state during the second battle, she abruptly loses all fear of death, as long as Baltoh is the one to kill her. In the Circle of Lust, she is separated from Raphael and faces Prince Asmodeus. Asmodeus traps her in an illusion that manifests her deepest desires, forming a fantasy in which she is not only being intimate with Baltoh, but Selene and Molly as well. She even thanked Asmodeus for the chance to indulge herself. Abilities and Equipment Archangel Powers Due to Baltoh's training, Rosemary became the strongest Archangel in Heaven, though her comrades simply believed she was a natural-bor prodigy. Not only can she slay groups of Demons single-handedly, she managed to easily kill a Goliath that had brought down Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. Unlike the Original Seven Archangels, she is result of several Angels fusing together, giving her a soul reminiscent of a hive mind. Asmodeus, while keeping her trapped in her illusion, tried to steal Rosemary's soul. However, by channeling all of her power to only one of her souls, she was able to fool Asmodeus like a cutting off its tail to escape a predator. Towards the end of the war, Michael grows suspicious as to how well she gets along with Baltoh and asks her why she always fights by her side. She argues that she enjoys finally having someone who can fight at her pace, that all of the other Archangels are too weak to do anything but slow her down. Valkyrie Powers Like Selene and Molly, Baltoh turns Rosemary into a Valkyrie when they arrive at Hell, not only turning her into a physical, living being, but giving her the powers of Cinereo, letting her harness the fundamental powers of nature, plus use the Ragnarök technique. After transforming, she faces a Titan, something that normally would have crushed her like an ant, and killed it without any real effort or trouble. Armor As an Archangel, Rosemary wielded a claymore made of silver from Heaven. It contained Angelic energy, letting it cut through Demonic beings like a laser. Unlike Baltoh, who keeps his sword in Purgatory when not using it, she can dematerialize and rematerialize her weapon whenever she needs it. As a Valkyrie, she wears the same styled armor as Selene and Molly and wields the same cleaver blade. Relic Shield Baltoh entrusts his shield to Rosemary. Since it is made of Sacred Relics, it greatly boosts her Angelic powers, up to the point where she can stand against Legion herself. However, it is Selene and Molly that shows her that its power is best used when applied to everyone, rather than just focused on her.